The New Clans (ocs wanted)
by ArghhWhyCantIThinkOfOne
Summary: After being thrown out of their twoleg nest, and rejected by the clans, Sierra Mist and Mountain Dew decide to form their own clans.
1. Chapter 1

Anger burned through Sierra Mist's pelt as she followed her brother away from the clan boundaries.

How could they just turn them away like that? She held back a growl, without even letting them show what they were capable of?

"It'll be alright, we'll find a home soon, maybe some twolegs-"

"No!" Sierra Mist spat, cutting her brother off, "Twolegs are what got us into this mess!"

Her heart wrenched at the thought of the warm and loving home, where she always had a full belly, and a comfortable bed.

However, that all changed when a new twoleg moved into the house.

This twoleg was not like her other twolegs, she had a screechy voice, and smelled of smoke.

Not long after she moved in, Sierra Mist and her brother were thrown out.

Left on their own, with no food, and no warm beds.

Now, here they were, being rejected by the clans, would no one ever want them?

They padded along in silence, until her brother suddenly halted, raising his muzzle, and taking a deep breath.

"The air here is so crisp."

Sierra Mist gazed around, realizing that they were standing in a large field, with grass almost as tall as she was, surrounding the field, was a circle of trees, and in the distance, she could see the sun-sparkled water of a pond.

"Maybe we should live here," her brother flicked his tail over to the direction of the pond, "There should be plenty of water to drink, and fish to catch."

A gleam sparkled in his yellow eyes.

"Remember how I caught that fish that our twolegs kept?"

"That's probably what got us thrown out," Sierra Mist muttered wryly.

A look of hurt flashed across her brother's face, and guilt welled up in her chest.

"Mountain Dew, I'm sorry I didn't mean-"

"It's okay," he waved her words off with a flick of his tail, "We both know that it wasn't any of our faults we got thrown out."

Sierra Mist dipped her head.

"I'm going to go look over by the trees, maybe find us somewhere nice to sleep."

Mountain Dew's eyes sparked with interest.

"So, we've finally found a home?" he asked eagerly.

"I didn't say that, we don't even know if this will work out," Sierra Mist sighed, trying not to look at her brother, she didn't want to see him looking sad.

She wouldn't make him a promise she couldn't keep though, what if she agreed to live here, what if she fell in love with it, and then was forced to leave, just as she had her previous home?

Still carrying those thoughts with her, she padded over to the trees, taking in their woodsy scent.

"Intruder!" a shrill voice suddenly cried out, and Sierra Mist reeled back, feeling sharp pain spread through her muzzle.

"Ow! What was that for?" she demanded.

Standing before her, was a small dark tabby and white cat, who was lashing his tail so hard, that Sierra Mist wondered how it didn't hurt.

"You're on my territory," the cat growled, anger glittered in his dark eyes.

Sierra Mist waved her tail across the clearing.

"All of this belongs to one little cat?"

The fur on the back of the tabby's neck rose, and he raised a white paw, claws unsheathed.

"Just get off my territory before I give you a clawing you won't forget," his eyes flickered to her neck, "This isn't a place for kittypets, go back to your twolegs!"

"We don't have twolegs anymore," Mountain Dew mewed softly from behind Sierra Mist.

"There's two of you?" the tabby screeched, shaking his head, "Just what I need, two kittypets scaring all my prey away!"

"We're not kittypets anymore," Sierra Mist growled, finding herself getting irritated.

What was this cat, who still had kit fluff, telling them what to do?

She and her brother could easily take him on.

Mountain Dew must have thought the same thing, because he darted forward, pouncing on the other cat, and barreling him to the ground.

The tabby let out a small yelp of surprise, before swiping his claws over Mountain Dew's muzzle.

_How dare he!_

Anger surged through Sierra Mist's pelt, and she jumped into the fight, raking her claws down the tabby's flank, who let out a cry of outrage, and sank his teeth into her shoulder.

Sierra Mist yowled and cuffed the tabby over his ears.

After awhile, the fight broke apart, and the three cats sat a few mouse-tail lengths from each other, gasping to catch their breath.

Finally, the tabby spoke.

"You two fight well...for kittypets," he remarked, licking the wound on his shoulder.

"Thanks! You're not so bad yourself...for a kit," Mountain Dew exclaimed.

"I'm not a kit!" the tabby growled, jumping to his paws, looking like he was about to attack Mountain Dew, but to Sierra Mist's relief, he sat back down.

"How old are you?" Mountain Dew questioned.

"Not that it's any of your business, but I'm seven moons old," the tabby growled.

"Wow!" Mountain Dew exclaimed, his eyes growing wide, "You really are a kit, what are you doing out here all alone?"

"None of your business!" the tabby spat, bristling.

"Uh, well, I'm Mountain Dew and this is my sister, Sierra Mist, what's your name?"

"Viper, because I strike first and ask questions later!" the cat growled, raising a paw.

"There's no need to be striking anyone," Sierra Mist sighed, "We'll be going."

She turned to leave, when the tabby's voice suddenly stopped her.

"Don't go."

She looked back at him with surprise, first, he was chasing them out, now he was asking them not to leave.

"What do you mean don't go? I thought you wanted us off of your territory," she meowed.

"Well, uh, I can't leave two kittypets to fend for themselves can I?" he looked around, "There are many dangers out there, badgers, foxes, rabbits-"

"Rabbits?" a new voice scoffed, "Rabbits aren't dangerous, I eat rabbits all the time!"

Sierra Mist soon found that the voice belonged to a black she-cat, who looked a little bit older than Viper, but younger than her and Mountain Dew.

"Hey Sprig, what's going on here?" a light reddish brown and white tabby asked, padding up next to the black she-cat.

"Yeah Sprig, who are these cats?" she asked.

Sierra Mist narrowed her eyes at the dark tabby.

"Didn't you say your name is Viper?"

The reddish brown tabby snorted.

"Sprig likes to think he's tough."

"Get off my territory, all of you!" the dark tabby hissed, lashing his tail.

Even though he seemed angry, Sierra Mist saw hurt shining in his eyes.

The reddish brown tabby most have noticed it too, because he meowed.

"Sprig, I'm sorry, I'm just teasing."

The small cat's dark fur flattened, and he nodded.

"Okay, here's the thing, these two cats want to stay on this territory, and I'm alright with them staying here, as long as they stay away from my trees."

Sierra Mist opened her mouth to protest, but Mountain Dew silenced her with his tail.

She glared at him, knowing that he didn't care if he couldn't be in the trees or not, that he'd be perfectly happy living by the pond.

The black she-cat narrowed her hazel eyes.

"They look like kittypets, kittypets can't fight or hunt! We'll just be taking in two useless mouths to feed."

A prickle of anger rose the fur along Sierra Mist's back, but she willed it to lay flat, she and her brother could possibly have a home here, and she didn't want to ruin their chances.

"We'll contribute, we tried showing the clans what we can do, but they wouldn't even let us speak before chasing us off," Sierra Mist sighed.

Interest sparked in the reddish brown tabby's eyes.

"You know, we can form our own clan."

"That's mouse-brained, Clove," the black she-cat snorted.

Sprig shook his head.

"No, Clove's right, it would be good to have some cats on my side, I can't guard my territory all by myself."

"So, you're actually going to let other cats go into your precious territory?" the black she-cat snorted.

"If they can prove that they're worthy to be on my territory," Sprig meowed, flexing his claws.

"Well, I want my territory to be by the pond," Mountain Dew meowed.

"I think we should discuss this with Truffle, Herb, Cicely, and Cress first," the black she-cat meowed, "They'll want to be involved."

"Wow, so many cats live on this territory," Sierra Mist remarked with her eyes wide.

"Just our family, Truffle and Herb are our parents, Cicely, Cress, and Rue are our older siblings, and Sprig and I are littermates," Clove meowed.

"We'll find more cats though, right?" Mountain Dew twitched his whiskers, "I've seen these clans, they have a whole bunch of cats, more than just two families!"

"We'll talk to the others, and then we'll decide what to do," Rue meowed firmly.

Clove nodded his head, excitement shone in his hazel eyes.

"Come on! I'll show you the best hunting spots!"

As they followed the tabby tom, Sierra Mist felt a flicker of excitement well up in her chest, had they finally found the place where they belonged?

* * *

_A/N: _

_Eventually, they're going to split into three clans, the clan in the trees, the clan in the field, and the clan by the pond. _

_Anyway, here's the character sheet_

_Name:_

_Clan:_

_Fur Color:_

_Eye Color:_

_Extra Appearance:_

_Personality:_

_Backstory: _

_Three Additional Facts:_

_Other:_


	2. Chapter 2

Excitement buzzed through Mountain Dew's pelt, as he followed Rue and Clove to the group of cats who were padding towards them.

There was a black and white tom, a brown tortoiseshell tabby she-cat, a pale brown tabby she-cat, and a tom, who was also a pale brown tabby, at least the top half of him was, the rest of his fur was white, as though he had taken a swim in the pond, and the water washed away all of the color in his fur.

Of course, Mountain Dew knew that wasn't possible, his twolegs had given him plenty of baths, and the yellow tabby patches in his fur never washed out.

"This is as far as I'm going, let me know what they say, but don't mention me to my parents," Sprig meowed, before racing off, as though a dog was chasing him.

Mountain Dew's fur prickled at the thought of dogs.

The house next to the house he lived in, had this massive dog, who would bark all through the night.

That was one thing he wasn't going to miss about living with twolegs.

"Mom! Mom! Mom! Dad! Dad! Dad!" Clove's excited shrieks brought Mountain Dew back to what was happening now, and he watched as the reddish brown tabby raced over to the other cats, who were close enough now, that Mountain Dew could see that they each had prey in their mouths.

He swiped his tongue over his jaws, and his belly rumbled, as he stared at the large rabbit, that the pale brown she-cat was carrying.

He only had rabbit once, when Sierra Mist had killed the rabbit that their twolegs had gotten, and even though it wasn't as good as that fish he ate, it was still delicious.

_I'm so hungry right now, I'd eat just about anything!_

"Clove, Rue, who are these cats?" the tortoiseshell asked sharply, her golden gaze boring into Mountain Dew, making him shift uncomfortably.

"We found them nosing around the territory, they want to form a clan," Rue snorted.

"Okay, I don't see what that has to do with us," the tortoiseshell meowed.

"They want to use our land, and they want us to join them," Rue sighed.

Clove's eyes sparkled, and he bounced around the paws of the other cats.

"Can we? I think it'd be so much fun, we could all look at for each other, and we'll be able to have cool names, and get promotions!"

The black and white tom looked thoughtful.

"I don't see what it could hurt, and it'd be nice to have extra paws around to help out with the hunting and nest building."

"Are you out of your mind, Truffle?" the tortoiseshell hissed, "That's two new mouths to feed, and more, if they decide to recruit more cats for their clan! We're just fine the way we are."

"I can catch fish," Mountain Dew meowed, hoping that him speaking wouldn't upset the tortoiseshell even more.

He wasn't even sure if he really could catch fish, he had never fished in a pond before, but he assumed it was just like a larger tank, how hard could it be?

The tortoiseshell lashed her tail.

"I don't remember asking the opinion of a kittypet."

Mountain Dew took a step back, feeling a stab of hurt in his chest, at the tortoiseshell's harsh words.

"We're not kittypets anymore," Sierra Mist meowed lowly, flicking her tail.

"Yes," Mountain Dew nodded, feeling the hurt ease, being replaced with excitement, "We're going to be clan cats!"

"Good luck with that, just keep me out of it," the tortoiseshell grumbled, padding away with Truffle at her tail, the black and white tom shot an apologetic glance back at them, but he didn't say anything.

Mountain Dew refused to let the tortoiseshell's attitude daunt him, he was going to make this a new home for him and his sister, he was going to form his own clan by the pond, no matter what!

He puffed out his chest, feeling a new sense of determination flood through his veins.

"I think we should divide up into different clans, just like the ones in the forest, that way, we can have meetings."

"And battles!" Clove exclaimed, his hazel eyes glittering with excitement.

The pale tabby she-cat mrrowed, and placed her tail over his shoulder.

"Forgive my brother, I'm sure he doesn't really wish to fight anyone."

"It's alright," Mountain Dew purred, glancing at the young tom fondly, it was good to see someone with such a lively spirit, "I wouldn't mind having him in my clan."

"Your clan?" Rue hissed, "What makes you think you get to be leader of one of the clans? This is our land!"

"B-But it was my idea," Mountain Dew protested.

"Actually, it was Clove who suggested you make a clan."

The reddish brown tabby gasped.

"Oh imagine if I was leader! It'd be soo much fun, I could name the cats in my clan anything I wanted!" his eyes sparkled with mischief as he glanced at Rue, "I could name you Crowbutt!"

The black she-cat narrowed her eyes, and turned to Mountain Dew.

"Okay, I was wrong, I think you should definitely be leader of one of the clans over Clove."

Mountain Dew glanced over at the young tom, to see if he was upset by his sister's words, but to his surprise, he looked as pleased as a cat with a mouse.

"I know, why don't we decide what the clans will be, and then after we've all decided which clans we want to be in, we can vote for a leader?" the pale brown and white tabby tom suggested.

The pale tabby she-cat nodded.

"That's a good idea Cress."

"I want to be in whatever clan Mountain Dew is in," Clove meowed, gazing at the yellow and white tom with admiration, that made his pelt burn with embarrassment.

_This cat barely knows me, why is he looking at me like that?_

He shook the feeling out of his pelt, he had more important things to worry about, than a weird cat.

"I've stated before that I want a clan by the pond."

Rue nodded.

"And Sprig will want the trees, I don't even think there's a point in voting for a leader of that clan, you know he'll never let anyone boss him around."

All the cats muttered their agreements.

Mountain Dew narrowed his eyes, for siblings, they didn't seem particularly close to Sprig.

Is there a reason for it? He wondered briefly, before reminding himself that he had more important things to think about.

"And the last one can be in the field," the pale brown tabby suggested.

"That's three clans, does that sound like enough for everyone?" Rue asked.

The other cats nodded, and Mountain Dew found himself nodding along with them.

"Shouldn't we discuss this all with Sprig?" Clove asked, glancing towards the direction of the trees, "He'll be mad we left him out."

"That's his problem," Rue meowed stiffly, "He's the one who chose not to come out here."

Cress sighed and glanced down at his paws.

"I don't really blame him for still holding a grudge."

Anger flashed in Rue's eyes, and she turned on her brother.

"It's been four moons, we've apologized countless times, and he still won't forgive us!"

Clove nodded, and his eyes shone with sadness.

"I even brought him a mouse, and he snapped at me to get lost."

"What happened?" Mountain Dew asked with his eyes wide, glancing over at his sister, who looked just as interested, but he could see that she was trying not to show it.

He couldn't imagine being mad at his sister for four whole moons, whatever happened between Sprig and his siblings must have been really bad.

"I don't see why that's any of your business," Rue snapped.

The pale tabby shook her head.

"If we're going to live among these cats, then we can't keep treating them like strangers."

"Cicely's right," Cress meowed, coming to sit beside Mountain Dew.

"It happened when Sprig and Clove were three moons old, Sprig got really sick," he took a deep breath, and his fur prickled, as though he was reliving the memory.

"Herb didn't want any of the rest of us to catch what he had, so she took him to the woods, in the hopes that a fox or something would give him a fast death..." his voice trailed off.

"Wow," Sierra Mist's eyes widened, showing the shock that Mountain Dew felt.

"How could someone do that to their own kit?" he muttered, the words tumbling out of his mouth before he even realized that they were on his tongue.

Rue bristled, and faced him with fury burning in her hazel eyes.

"Herb's a good mother, she was only trying to do what was best for everyone!"

"What's done is done, all we can do now is move on, and hope that Sprig one day forgives us," Cress meowed softly.

"Right," Cicely gave a quick nod of her head, "Let's get down to business, who wants to go to which clan?"

"Well, I want to live in the clan by the pond, as everyone probably already knows," Mountain Dew meowed.

Clove nodded eagerly.

"Me too!"

"Okay, so that's me, Clove, and Sierra-"

"Actually," his sister cut him off, a look of regret shone in her eyes, which made Mountain Dew's heart thud in his chest.

_What was wrong? Was his sister no longer interested in staying here? _

She sighed, and Mountain Dew held his breath, preparing himself for her fateful words.

"This isn't going to be easy for you to hear, but I don't want to join the clan by the pond, I hate water, I think the clan in the field will be the perfect clan for me."

At her words, Mountain Dew felt a claw of grief scorch through his pelt.

All their lives, he and Sierra Mist had been together, they were even born right after the other, the second and third born of their litter, and now, she was wanting to live in another clan?

"It's okay," she meowed, nuzzling his cheek, "We'll still be able to see each other all the time," she flicked her tail over to the pond, "See, it's not too far away."

Mountain Dew nodded, though he wasn't entirely convinced, who would he share a bed with now that Sierra Mist would be in a different clan?

"I'll come to the pond clan," Cress meowed, shooting a glance at Clove, which went unnoticed by the reddish brown tom.

"I'll live in the field clan," Cicely meowed, touching noses with both of her brothers, before going to stand next to Sierra Mist.

"Rue?" Cress asked, looking expectantly at his sister.

The black pelted she-cat sighed.

"As much as I'll hate being bossed around by my little brother, I've always been drawn to the trees."

"So, it's decided then?" Cicely asked.

"Seems that way, I think we should all spend the night getting to know our new clanmates, and then, we'll meet back here at dawn to vote for who the leaders will be," Cress meowed.

Everyone nodded their agreements, and parted ways.

As Mountain Dew padded towards the pond, Clove chirped excitedly in his ear, but he couldn't focus on what the younger tom was saying, instead, his mind kept drifting to Sierra Mist.

Even though they would now be in different clans, he hoped that she wouldn't forget him.


	3. Chapter 3

From his perch on the branch of an oak tree, Viper glared down at his sister, Rue, flicking his tail with unease as she padded up to him.

Even though he couldn't stand her, he wasn't going to attack her, not like the other trespassers that sometimes strolled onto his territory.

"Stop looking at me like that, I'm joining your clan."

"No," Viper meowed flatly, turning away from her.

The swishing of leaves sounded from behind him, and Rue let out an irritated growl.

"You can't tell me if I can live amongst the trees or not, this is my land just as much as yours, maybe even more so, I'm older than you!"

"I didn't see you ever coming to the trees when Herb kicked me out," he grumbled.

The memory of what happened gnawed painfully at his belly, and squeezed his chest so badly, he struggled for breath.

_No._

He pushed those feelings down, until his heart felt as hard as stone, he would not be sad over a family who never loved him.

_Not like Adder had. _

He closed his eyes, trying to drown away thoughts of the she-cat, he couldn't afford to look weak, especially not in front of Rue.

He turned his focus back to the black she-cat, who was staring at him with narrowed hazel eyes.

At the sight of her eyes, he couldn't help but to feel a stab of jealousy, out of all of his siblings, he had been the only one to get the dark golden eyes of Herb.

Probably the only thing she's ever given to me, he thought bitterly.

"That's been moons ago, let it go," Rue sighed, rolling her eyes, "If we're going to live together, we're going to have to work together."

Viper let out a reluctant sigh, and jumped down from the branch, landing beside his sister, taking special care to land on a spot that wasn't covered with leaves, not wanting to scare even more prey away.

He couldn't imagine that their argument, and Rue, trampling in here like a badger, helped matters.

"Alright, if you want to join my clan, go make yourself useful and scout for trespassers," he flexed his claws, "If you see any, come get me, and I'll give those mangepelts a clawing they won't forget."

Rue narrowed her eyes.

"Um, aren't we supposed to be welcoming cats into our clan?"

"Not if they can't be trusted," Viper meowed, with a slight edge on his voice.

_Trusting the wrong cat brought nothing but trouble and death._

His heart twisted painfully, as he remembered the scraggly, half-starved she-cat, Meadow, that Adder had taken in.

She had taught her everything she had taught him about hunting and fighting, but unlike him, she didn't seem to appreciate it much.

One day, he had gone out hunting, and when he got back, Adder way lying under a tree, in a pool of her own blood, and Meadow was gone, leaving nothing behind but a clump of grey fur in Adder's claws.

After that, Viper vowed that he would never trust any cat for as long as he lived.

All trusting ever did, was bring pain and misery.

"Are you listening to me? I said, if we can't trust anyone, how are we ever going to grow our clan?" Rue growled.

"We take in kits, they're the only ones that can be trusted," Viper meowed.

_For now._

"Kits?" Rue hissed, "Do you mean we go out and kidnap a bunch of kits?"

"No, I mean, kits that have been abandoned, I'm sure I'm not the only one," he muttered.

Anger flashed in Rue's eyes.

"You're being really selfish you know that? You were sick, what were Herb and Truffle supposed to do? Keep you there until you killed the rest of us?"

Viper growled and stood in front of his sister, straining up, trying to look her right in the eyes, however, no matter how much he tried, he couldn't make himself as tall as her, not even close.

She must have noticed it too, because a look of amusement flashed in her eyes, which made his anger grow stronger.

"They didn't even try to help me," he spat, "They just send me out in the woods to die, but maybe it was a blessing, because if they hadn't then I wouldn't have met Adder, she saved me."

"Who is this Adder you keep talking about? If she's so special, where is she now?" Rue growled.

"My mother, and she's not here now, because she was killed because we trusted the wrong cat."

"Mother?" Rue hissed, "She's not your mother, Herb is!"

"Really? Because Adder cared for me, she taught me how to hunt and how to fight, also, she didn't abandon me at the first sign of trouble."

Viper turned away from his sister, not wanting to argue with her anymore, knowing that if the fight continued, he'd end up clawing her.

He didn't want it to come to that, even though she hadn't spoken up for him, when Herb decided to throw him out, he still didn't want to hurt her.

"If you're done acting like a kit, we should get to sleep, we've decided that we're going to all meet tomorrow to discuss who the leaders will be," Rue meowed.

Anger sparked in Viper's chest at the kit remark, but he pushed it down, no need to fight a fight that would never end.

"So, since only you're here, I'm assuming everyone split up into different clans?" he meowed instead.

"Uh, yeah, if you had been there, you would have known it, but you're too mouse-hearted to face Herb," Rue spat.

Viper closed his eyes, and sank his claws into the ground, taking deep breaths, trying to calm himself.

Once the anger faded, he looked at his sister, who was sitting there, grooming her paw.

"Alright, who went into which clan?"

"I joined here, as you already know, Cress, Clove, and the kittypet tom formed the clan by the pond, and Cicely and the kittypet she-cat formed the clan in the field," Rue meowed with her eyes closed, as though she was trying to remember the details.

"I don't see the point in holding a vote for leader, not until we get more members, it's obvious that Sierra Mist will lead the clan in the field, and Cress will lead the clan by the pond."

"That kittypet?" Rue hissed, "There's no way Cicely will let a kittypet boss her around!"

"Cicely will let anyone boss her around," Viper snorted, "At least, the Cicely I knew would."

"I guess we'll just have to see in the morning," Rue meowed, padding over to the base of the oak tree, and curling up next to it.

Viper shot her a look of contempt, before leaping into another tree, settling down on one of the branches.

If Rue was going to live with him, then she would have to learn that cats who lived in the trees, did not sleep on the ground.

Sun streamed through the sparsely covered branches, arousing Viper from his sleep.

He got to his paws, and stretched with a yawn, nearly falling off of the branch, when Rue yowled.

"About time! Let's go!"

Not bothering to ask her why she didn't wake him up sooner, he jumped from the branch, and landed beside her, causing her black fur to bristle.

"I don't understand how you can just jump from a tree like that without getting hurt," she muttered.

Viper flicked his tail in response, and meowed,

"Just take me to the place where everyone decided to meet."

She opened her mouth, like she wanted to give a retort, but instead, she just gave a quick nod, and started padding forward.

As he followed her, he couldn't stop the apprehension from creeping up in his pelt, he hadn't seen Cicely or Cress in moons, and even worse, what if Herb was there?

He started to turn back around, to head for the safety of the trees, when Rue grabbed his scruff, pulling him back.

"Don't be such a mouse-heart," she growled.

"I'm not being a-"

"Sprig!"

Viper nearly jumped out of his fur, at the sound of Cicely's voice.

"Sprig! It's so nice to see you!" the pale tabby she-cat exclaimed, running up to him.

Viper tensed, as she rubbed her cheek against his.

Why was she acting so happy to see him? If she really cared, why didn't she visit him earlier?

"Cicely, what are you doing here? We didn't agree to meet here," Rue huffed.

"I know," the pale tabby sighed, "But I got worried, you were taking so long, I was worried that Sprig wasn't going to come."

"Viper, I go by Viper now," he meowed.

Cicely wrinkled her nose.

"That's a strange name."

"It's a name to remember my mother by," Viper meowed shortly.

"Your mother? What does that name have to do with Herb?"

"Not Herb, Adder."

_Did they really think he'd want to honor the cat who had abandoned him?_

"Well, I'm not going to ask anymore questions, because it's obvious you don't want to talk about it, besides, we really should be meeting the others," Cicely meowed.

Viper blinked gratefully at her, perhaps she wasn't as much of a mouse-brain as he remembered.

They continued on, until they came to a fence post at the far edge of the territory, standing there, were the two kittypets that he had met yesterday, Cress, and Clove, who was curled up asleep.

He wanted to ask where Herb and Truffle was, but he decided against it, he didn't care where they were, he was just glad that they weren't there.

"Sprig," Cress regarded him with a curt nod.

"He goes by Viper now," Cicely meowed.

Viper sighed, preparing to answer Cress' questions, but to his relief, his brother just cleared his throat.

"Before we begin-"

"Who decided that you get to be in charge?" Rue growled, "You're not even the oldest, Cicely is."

Cicely's hazel eyes widened.

"Oh no, I don't want to be in charge, I'm perfectly happy with Cress taking over.

Rue lashed her tail.

"Well, I'm not!"

"It's a good thing Rue and Cress aren't in the same group," Sierra Mist muttered to her brother, who mrrowed.

"You two got something to say?" the black she-cat spat, turning to the kittypets.

"What does it matter who's older? You're pretty much all three the same age, Mountain Dew was born before me, yet, I take charge most of the time, the leader should be someone who is mature enough to lead, which Rue, I don't know you well, but from what I've seen, you're not," Sierra Mist meowed flatly.

Rue gasped, and unsheathed her claws.

"How dare you assume you know anything about me! You're on my land, you will respect me!"

"This is neutral territory!" Cress spat, "We agreed that these cats could live with us, this land is just as much theirs as it is ours, the same goes for any new recruits we have join, we made an agreement yesterday, and we must honor that agreement."

Cicely nodded.

"Cress is right, that's what we all agreed on."

"Fine, let Cress take over, just like he always does everything," Rue grumbled, padding a couple of fox-lengths away from the group to go sulk.

"As I was saying, before we begin, I realized that there's not really enough cats in our clans to choose a leader, so I think that we should recruit more members before we vote."

"I have a few friends in twoleg place, of course, they're happy with their twolegs, but maybe they know cats who will want to join us," Mountain Dew meowed.

"More kittypets?" Rue sneered.

"With the right training, kittypets can be just as vital as any rogue or loner, I'm going to go talk to the junkyard cats," Cress meowed.

A gasp of surprise emitted from Cicely, and even Rue stopped sulking, and raced up back to the group, with a look of concern.

"You're going to talk to them? Cress, are you mad? They'll tear you apart!"

_The junkyard cats?_

Viper had never heard of them before, but from the way his sisters were reacting, they sounded like bad news.

"I'm sure they're not that bad, and if they are, wouldn't we rather have them as friends than enemies? We need formidable fighters if we want our clans to be strong."

"I guess you're right," Rue relented with a sigh.

As much as Viper didn't want any strange cats, especially not cats who were possibly aggressive, his brother was right, it would be better to have those cats as friends than as enemies, he just hoped that no one would get killed in the process of trying to recruit them.


	4. Chapter 4

Unease prickled through Sierra Mist's pelt, as she followed Mountain Dew, Rue, and Clove through the alley leading to twoleg place.

After she was abandoned, she never wanted to step paw in a place like that again.

Mountain Dew must have noticed how she felt, because he meowed,

"It's alright Sierra Mist, we probably won't see our twolegs."

Part of her wished that she would see her twolegs again, and that they'd be waiting for her and Mountain Dew to come home, and that the mean, smoke-smelling twoleg was gone.

"What about those cats? They seem nice," Clove meowed, flicking his tail over to two toms, one a plump cream tabby, and the other, an underfed white cat, with tabby stripes on his legs, tail, and face, who were standing nose to nose, with their tails lashing.

Sierra Mist thought they seemed anything but nice, they were clearly ready to fight each other.

"You think they seem nice?" Rue snorted, echoing her thoughts.

The white tom must have heard her, because he snapped his head in her direction, and narrowed his eyes.

Hackles raised, he started padding over there, no longer seeming angry at the other tom, instead, they both seemed to have focused their anger on them.

"First of all, there's no need to fight, we just want to talk," Mountain Dew meowed, stepping forward.

The white tom lashed his striped tail.

"Talk? About what?"

"Yeah," the cream tabby sneered, "If you think you can just steal from my scrap can, think again!"

Rue growled, and stood beside Mountain Dew.

"I don't want to steal from your stupid scrap can, unlike you dumb kittypets, I can hunt for myself!"

Sierra Mist held back a growl at the black she-cat's words, just because she used to be a kittypet, didn't mean that she couldn't hunt!

"Kittypet?" the white tom screeched, his blue eyes growing wide, as though it was the worst thing he'd ever heard.

"How dare you call me a kittypet! How dare you assume that I like to laze around all day and rely on twolegs to feed me! If I was a kittypet, do you think I'd be stealing food from Pig's scrap can?"

"Ha! So you admit, you were stealing from me!" the cream tabby, Pig, exclaimed.

"If you're not a kittypet, then why can't you hunt for yourself?" Rue demanded.

"Because, the thrill of stealing is way more fun," he narrowed his eyes mischievously, "A few nights ago, I stole a ball from one of the dogs who lives around here."

"And you almost got yourself killed," Pig grumbled.

"Wow! You're so brave!" Clove gasped, staring admiringly at the white tom, "Do you want to join our clan?"

The white tom's sparked with interest.

"Clan? Will there be food there?"

"Of course!" Clove purred, "Cats in clans always look out for each other, that's what being part of a clan is all about, a clan is like a family, and families always stick together."

Sierra Mist doubted that Sprig would agree, but she didn't say anything, and to her relief, neither did Mountain Dew.

The cream tom shook his head.

"I'm sorry, but it's going to be a no for me, if I join your clan, who will guard my scrap can?"

"I'll be happy to join you, and I know a cat who might want to join too, her name is Lilac, her twolegs threw her out when they found out she's expecting kits," the white tom meowed, "I'm Ferret by the way."

"Is that a good idea to bring an expectant queen into the clans?" Rue asked, "How will she be able to hunt or fight?"

"I thought the point of the clans was to look out for each other?" Ferret flicked his tail in Clove's direction, "That's what he said."

"Come on, let's just meet Lilac before we judge her," Sierra Mist meowed.

She wanted to get out of there as soon as possible, and an argument with Rue involved could keep them there until sundown.

Rue opened her mouth, like she wanted to say something, but to Sierra Mist's relief, she didn't.

Suddenly, a loud yowl tore through the air, and Ferret's eyes widened.

"Lilac!" he breathed, before pelting off towards the sound.

Unsure of what else to do, Sierra Mist followed after him, with the others at her tail.

She skidded to a halt, and annoyance flared up in her pelt, when she saw a small, plump pale blue-grey she-cat with a white chest and paws crouched down on top of a fence.

She had her yellow eyes widened with fright, and her fur was fluffed out, yet, Sierra Mist could see nothing wrong with her.

"Help!" the she-cat yowled.

_She's not hurt, why is she carrying on like this?_

"Just jump down, nothing is holding you there, mouse-brain," Rue muttered.

"Don't talk to her like that!" Ferret spat, his blue eyes flashing.

He then padded up to the she-cat.

"It's alright Lilac, just jump down onto my back, I promise I won't let anything happen to you," he meowed soothingly.

Lilac shook her head.

"No way, it's too far to jump, and I'll hurt you!"

"You won't I promise, how'd you get up on the fence anyway? Is everything alright?"

"I-I was running for some dogs," Lilac stammered out.

"Dogs?" Ferret bristled, and frantically looked around.

Sierra Mist's heart started pounding in her chest, the last thing she wanted was to run into dogs who were out of their yards, and even worse off of their leashes.

"It's alright, their twolegs came and got them, can you just get me down please?"

"Are you sure you can't jump down?" Ferret asked.

The blue-grey she-cat shook her head.

"She's really useless, I don't think I want her in my clan," Rue whispered.

Even though Sierra Mist agreed with the black she-cat, she thought her words were a little harsh.

She turned her focus back to the two cats, and saw that Ferret was now on top of the fence beside Lilac.

"Hey you, big cat!" Ferret yowled down to Mountain Dew.

"Me?" Mountain Dew asked, stepping forward.

The white tom nodded.

"I want you to stand there to catch Lilac when she jumps down, do not let her get hurt."

How dare he boss my brother around like that! Sierra Mist thought, as irritation rippled through her pelt, why should he have to help a cowardly she-cat and her rude friend?

"I'll be happy to help," Mountain Dew meowed.

Sierra Mist shot a glare at him, couldn't he stand up for himself?

"Thank you," Ferret meowed, before turning to Lilac, "He's a big cat, bigger than both of us combined, I don't think you'll hurt him."

Worry darkened Lilac's yellow eyes.

"I'm carrying kits Ferret, I can't just jump down, what if they get hurt?"

"You jumped up there, you can jump down!" Rue spat.

"Shut up!" Ferret hissed at her, before turning to Mountain Dew.

"New plan, get on your hind legs, and stand against the fence."

"Like this?" Mountain Dew asked, doing as instructed.

Clove snorted.

"You look like a twoleg!"

Ferret nodded, and hooked his back claws into the top of the fence, lying, so that his head was against Mountain Dew's, forming a bridge.

"Alright Lilac, walk over me, and then over the big cat, and you should reach the ground safely."

The blue-grey she-cat opened her mouth again, and Sierra Mist was afraid she would find yet another reason to stay up on the fence, but to her relief, she said nothing, and started slowly climbing down.

"I made it!" she exclaimed a few moments later.

Ferret dropped from his perch and nuzzled her.

"Are you alright?"

She nodded.

"Yes, I think so."

"Um, don't you two have someone to thank?" Sierra Mist demanded, jerking her muzzle in her brother's direction.

Ferret blinked at Mountain Dew.

"Thank you, is there any way I can repay you?"

"Yes, thank you," Lilac meowed, "I probably would have never gotten down without your help."

"Lilac, would you like to join one of our clans?" Mountain Dew asked.

"It's great!" Ferret purred, "There's food there."

The queen scrunched her face up, looking deep in thought, before nodding.

"I would like to go see if Marshmallow wants to join first."

Ferret narrowed his eyes, and swished his tail.

"Is that really the best idea? I'm sure that overgrown lump is perfectly fine in his twoleg nest."

Anger flashed in Lilac's yellow gaze.

"Of course I'm sure!" she spat, "Why wouldn't I invite the father of my kits?"

At her words, Sierra Mist was taken back a bit, she had assumed that Ferret was Lilac's mate; he seemed to be very protective over her.

"Of course, the more the merrier!" Mountain Dew exclaimed.

Clove purred.

"I hope he joins our clan, his name is perfect for it."

"What's your clan like?" Ferret asked, as Lilac led them away from the fence, and along a row of twoleg dens.

"It's by the pond, I'm going to learn to swim and fish!" Clove meowed proudly.

Ferret bristled slightly.

"Um, sounds...nice."

"I think it sounds wonderful, fish is my favorite," Lilac piped up from the front of the group.

"Yeah!" Ferret exclaimed, "It'd be great learning how to swim too."

Sierra Mist narrowed her eyes at the white tom, when Clove first mentioned the clan by the pond, he seemed apprehensive about it, now he seemed excited about it?

She shook her head.

_Rogues were so strange. _

"Well, my clan is among the trees, we climb and stuff," Rue put in, shifting her gaze to Lilac, "Though, it's not for everyone."

"Mine is in the field," Sierra Mist meowed quickly, before Lilac or Ferret could catch on to what Rue was implying.

"The field? Like an open field where you can run around all day, feel the wind blow through your fur, and the excitement as your heart pounds in your chest, running so fast, it feels like you're flying, like nothing can touch you?" Ferret's eyes gleamed with excitement.

"Yeah, basically like that." Sierra Mist meowed, deciding not to tell him, that the grass would be taller than he was, and he probably wouldn't be able to run freely through it.

"That sounds terrible!" Lilac scoffed, "An open field with no protection? What if some hawk comes for my kits?"

"I'll protect the kits with my life," Ferret nuzzled her, but she pulled back.

"I'm not joining the clan in the fields! I'm joining the clan with the pond," she flicked her tail to Mountain Dew, "I need a big strong cat like him to protect me."

Anger burned in Sierra Mist's chest, being part of a clan meant more than protection, it meant working together! Each cat had to pull their own weight!

Her brother must not have felt the same, because he dipped his head to Lilac, and meowed,

"I will be happy to have you as part of my clan."

Ferret nodded.

"Me too, if you'll have me."

Mountain Dew puffed out his chest proudly, and shot a glance in Sierra Mist direction; she back a growl, was he really making this a contest?

She wouldn't play into his game though, he could have all the cats he wanted in his clan, it didn't matter to her if her clan was smaller.

"We're here!" Lilac announced, stopping in front of a run down, twoleg den, which had spots of red showing through the green.

The queen ran up to the door, and went through a smaller door.

We had one of those doors at our old twoleg den, Sierra Mist thought, as an ache of homesickness gripped at her heart.

She didn't have long to dwell on her hurt feelings though, because Lilac soon came out, with a large tom.

Sierra Mist blinked at the sight of him, he was even bigger than Mountain Dew, and muscles rippled beneath his white pelt, as he followed Lilac towards them.

"What did you wake me up from my nap for?" he spat.

Mountain Dew stepped forward.

"Your mate is in our clan, and we were wondering if you-"

"Mate?" Marshmallow turned to Lilac, "I'm not your mate," he hissed, "When will you get that through your head? As if I'd ever lower myself to being with an alley cat!"

Hurt flashed in Lilac's eyes, and she took a step back.

"But I thought-"

"Thought what? That we'd raise these kits together? That we'd be together forever, and you'd get to live with me, and eat all of my food?" he shook his massive white head, "I don't want anything to do with you, or these kits."

"That's enough!" Ferret spat, stepping in between Marshmallow and Lilac.

"You should feel grateful, that someone as beautiful, kind, and caring as Lilac would give you the time of day, and to say you don't want anything to do with your own kits?" he shook his head, "What kind of cat are you?"

"A cat who knows exactly what he wants, now you all get off my territory, before I yowl for my twolegs!"

"Are you sure you don't want to come?" Lilac meowed softly.

The large tom shook his head.

"No, I never loved you, and I never will, now get gone!"

As they padded away from the large cat's home, Sierra Mist couldn't help but to feel sorry for the annoying queen, it couldn't be easy to hear that from a cat she used to be close to.

"Well, at least we have two new members," Mountain Dew meowed.

"Make that three!" a voice piped up from behind them.

Sierra Mist turned her head, and saw Pig standing there.

"Pig? What made you change your mind?" Ferret asked.

"I learned that I'd be going nowhere, if I just spent my whole life guarding one scrap can."

"Well, we're glad to have you, let's go see if the other cats found anyone," Mountain Dew meowed.

Sierra Mist pushed through the crowd, so that she was walking alongside her brother.

She couldn't wait to get home, and discuss the events of the day with him.

Then, a strike of pain seared through her chest, as she remembered that they weren't in the same clan.

Did she make the right choice in not joining the clan by the pond?


End file.
